Forming capable and authentic educational leaders

Abstract

Given the nature of the challenges and tensions discussed in chapters 2 and 3, principals and other educational leaders in schools will, I believe, need to be supported and developed in special ways. The short cases presented in chapter 3 represent many of the daily challenges and tensions faced by educational leaders in schools. As was discussed earlier, resolving such tensions calls upon more than an educational leader's knowledge and skills; it requires the application of good judgement, intuition and wisdom, as well as logic and reason. As was evident from the conclusions in Marks' (2002–03) research reported in chapter 8, many contemporary competency-driven leadership development programs do not prepare educational leaders for decision-making involving contestation of values and ethical tensions. In chapters 7, 8 and 9, I suggested that educational leaders need to have the capacity to share their leadership responsibilities with other key stakeholders in their school communities; develop their leadership capabilities both as individuals and as professionals; and practice authentic leadership, especially by being present to and for others in their school community. Educational leadership development programs (e.g. short courses and mentoring), as currently constituted, indicate a genuine commitment to the continuous improvement of leadership practice in schools, but if we wish to create organisations that are alive with shared and distributed leadership and leaders who are capable of leading in tension-filled, ethically-charged situations, a more holistic perspective of what constitutes leadership preparation and development needs to be generated and implemented.